Electric railway.



No. 662,421. Patented Nov. 27, I900. W. GRUNUW, JR. ELECTRIC RAILWAY.

(Application filed Apr. 5, 1900.]

(No Model.)

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UniTTnn STATES PATENT @Ttibit.

I WILLIAM GRUNOW, JR., OF BRIDGEPORT, CONNECTICUT, ASSIGNOR TO THE MCELROY-GRUN OW ELECTRIC RAILWAY SYSTEM, OF SAME PLACE.

ELECTRIC RAILWAY.

SPECIFICATION forming part of Letters Patent N 0. 662.421, dated November 27, 1900.

Application filed April 5, 1900. Serial No. 11.647. (No model.)

To all whom it may concern.-

Be it known that I, WVILLIAM GRUNOW, Jr., a citizen of the United States, and a resident of Bridgeport, county of Fair-field, and State of Connecticut, have made a new and useful Invention in Electric Railways, of which the following is a specification.

My invention has for its object to provide means at intervals along the roadway of an electric railway of the surface-contact type which shall be so arranged and interconnected with the sectional rails or conductors located in the road-bed and the switch operating or controlling electromagn ets therefor thata motor-man may readily reestablish the circuit between the current feeder or main after it has been disrupted at any switch under or adjacent to a car and will be fully understood by referring to the accompanying drawings, in

which- Figure 1 is a diagrammatic view illustrating the tram-rails, sectional rails or conductors, trolley-shoe of a tram-car, and the cover of a switch-box located at one side of the roadbed, all in sectional view, a portable battery for reestablishing the lostcircuit being shown in part-sectional and part-elevational view. 2 is a similar view to Fig. 1, illustrating also in elevational View a part of a train-car passing over the track and a portable battery carried thereby and as applied in effecting the result sought.

My invention contemplates the use of a small portable battc ry for effecting the closure 5 of the circuit through the switching-magnets at any of the switch-boxes where the feeder circuit may be lost or disrupted as a car or vehicle travels thereover.

Referring to the drawings in detaihttrep- 4o resent the tram-rails, and 3 4L sectional rails or conductors located in the road-bed, one of said sectional supply rails or conductors l being connected by a branch current feeder or main 1 to its terminal, in this instance an armature (L for a switch-operating magnet m,

located in a switch-box at one side of the roadbed and under the cover 0 thereof. 2 represents a cond uctor running from the other seetional rail or energizing-conductor through a resistance r to the coils of the switching-magnet m and thence to earth to the generator G and by the return-circuit to the current feeder or mainf' and generator G,fbeing the current feeder or main running directly from the station-generator to and through all of the switch-boxes, where it is connected in each instance directly to a flexible copper conductors, connecting the cores m of an electromagnet forming a terminal of said feeder or main. 6o

6 represents a branch or switching circuit running from the conductor 2 to a metallic contact -pin p, embedded in and insulated from the cover 0, the outer portion of said contact'pin being accessible at all times.

g represents an automatic cut-out or fuse included in the switching'circuit 6, its function being to prevent evil-disposed persons from tampering with and injnriously alfecting the apparatus.

P represent-s a small portable battery carried on board the car, and w w flexible conductors adapted to be connected, as shown, so as to close the circuit between the contactpin p and one of the tram-rails t. y

In Fig. 2 of the drawings Ihave illustrated the portable battery P as being located permanently in position at one side of the car, where it may be under lock and key, one pole of the battery being connected directly to the axle a" of the tram wheels to w, the other pole being connected by a switch so] to a flexible conductor, the free end of which is adapted to be placed in contact with the contact-pin p in the cover 0 of the switch-box.

The operation of the apparatus is as follows: Suppose the current to be lost to the switchingmagnets m, in which event the switching-n1agnet m, Fig. 1, and the armature a, Fig. 2, drop and rupture the circuit to both of the sectional rails or conductors 3 t. The inotorman then applies the portable battery P by connecting one conductor to with the tram-rail t and the other with the contact-pin 19, thereby closing the circuit 5 through the conductor 6, fuse g, and switchoperating magnet m by earth to the tram-rail 6, thus causing the magnet to be lifted, so that its poles come into electrical contact with the armature ct, at which time the working circuit is established from the generator by the current feeder or main f, flexible conductors, cores of the magnet m, armature a, branch feederLandsectionalsupplyrailor conductor 4: to the trolley-shoe b to the controller, where the circuit is broken. Another circuit, however, is established by the trolley-shoe I), seetional energizing rail or conductor 3, conductor 2, resistance r, and coils of the magnet m to earth and lo the other pole of the generator, after which the switch-circuit may be ruptured by the removal of the battery P, the electromagnetic circuit-closer m being now held in its upper position by the working current. The motorman then establishes a circuit through the cont-roller and proceeds on his way.

In Fig. 2 of the drawings I have shown that the portable battery P may be in the nature of a storage battery and may, if preferred, be recharged by closing the switch 3 w upon the right-hand contact, so as to include the resistance 'r, the recharging-circuit beingrin derivation from the motor-circuit.

I do not limit my invention in its application to the especial arrangements of sectional rails or conductors and switching electromagnets and circuit connections as shown and described, as I believe it is broadly new with me to provide a branch switching-circuit and an exposed contact for each switchboX in a contact system of electric railways,

' wherein the operating-current is supplied'directly from a station-generator both for the motors and the switching-magnets, the arrangement being such that a portable source of electrical energy may be utilized by a mo-' in combination with an automatic cut-out or fuse.

Having thus described my invention, What I claim, and desire to secure by Letters Patent of the United States, is-

1. A contact system of electric railways having sectional rails or conductors located in the road-bed; a station-generator and a current feeder or main extending therefrom over the route; switching-magnets and circuit connections for operatively connecting said current feeder or main with the sectional rails or conductors; in combination with a switching-circuit in each switch-box including an exposed contact so arranged that circuit may be effected from an independent source of electrical energy to and through the switching-magnet in the switch-box, substantially as described.

2. A contact system of electric railways having sectional rails or conductors located in the road-bed; a station-generator and a current feeder or main extending therefrom over the route; switching-magnets and circuit connections for operatively connecting said current feeder or main with the sectional rails or conductors; in combination with a switching-circuit in each switch-box including an exposed contact and an automatic cutout device; together with a portable source of electrical energy adapted to be connected in circuit with the switching circuit and magnet and to reestablish the Working circuit through said magnet or feeder terminal and its corresponding sectional supply rail or conductor, substantially as described.

In testimony whereof I have hereunto subscribed my name this 4th day of April, 1900.

WILLIAM GRUNOW, JR.

Witnesses:

O. J. KINTNER, M. F. KEATING. 

